PawSox 9, IronPigs 4: Pawtucket pours it on in rain-shortened game

PAWTUCKET — It took the Pawtucket Red Sox 14 innings into the new season to score a run, but once they got going, they turned it on full speed.Pawtucket’s first scoring inning of the season produced eight...

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By
Paul Kenyon
Posted Apr. 4, 2014 @ 10:11 pm

PAWTUCKET — It took the Pawtucket Red Sox 14 innings into the new season to score a run, but once they got going, they turned it on full speed.

Pawtucket’s first scoring inning of the season produced eight runs Friday night, carrying the team to a 9-4 victory over Lehigh Valley. The game was shortened to 71/2 innings because of rain.

The offensive outburst came out of nowhere. Pawtucket had no runs on only four hits in its first 13 innings. Lehigh Valley, which won the opener, 4-0, Thursday night, again was ahead 4-0 in the fifth when it started raining, both literally and figuratively. Rain began falling from the sky as the PawSox were raining runs in their big fifth.

The first seven hitters reached base. Christian Vazquez doubled, Corey Brown walked and Mike McCoy doubled into the corner in left scoring both runners. He moved to third on Brock Holt’s line single to right, one of four times Holt reached base (two singles, a double and a walk).

Holt’s hit ended the night for Lehigh Valley starter Barry Enwright. Kyle Simon came on to make his Triple-A debut and promptly threw a wild pitch that allowed McCoy to score and make it 4-3. Simon walked Alex Hassan and Ryan Lavarnway to load the bases and then walked Bryce Brent, too, to force home the tying run.

Simon finally got the first out of the inning by striking out Dan Butler. That brought up Garin Cecchini, the third baseman up from Portland who is known for his batting eye. Cecchini did not work the count this time. He drilled Simon’s first pitch for a double to right-center, scoring two and putting Pawtucket on top, 6-4. Vazquez kept it going, singling to left for the seventh and eighth runs of the innings.

The offensive show stole the spotlight from Anthony Ranaudo, the highly regarded prospect who was making his first start of the season. Ranaudo was inconsistent, which was reflected in his final numbers. He went four innings, throwing 73 pitches, 43 for strikes. The McCoy radar gun had him regularly in the low 90s, topping out at 95.

He struck out seven, including five in the first two innings. Three of the four runs he allowed were unearned. He also walked four, two of whom scored. He had trouble keeping his pitches down. The 6-foot-7, 245-pounder needs to work the lower part of the strike zone, especially with his heater.

“He has to leverage his fastball down. That’s his key,” said Pawtucket manager Kevin Boles. “He has a big shape to his breaking ball and a real good feel for his change-up. His arm speed keeps getting better. He has to leverage the fastball. Everything plays off that.”

The IronPigs got to him in the third with four runs. Leadoff batter Clete Thomas walked, stole second and scored on a single to center by Ronny Cedeno. With two outs, including Ranaudo’s sixth strikeout of the night, Reid Brignac walked. Cameron Rupp then lofted a towering fly on a 3-2 count that had enough to carry onto the berm in left-center for a three-run homer.

Pawtucket added its ninth run in the seventh when Holt doubled and came around on a Brentz single.

Craig Breslow worked a scoreless fifth to get the victory. It was the second straight night Breslow has worked on rehab assignment from Boston because of shoulder tendinitis. He could be headed back to Boston soon.

Rich Hill worked two scoreless innings and Alex Wilson pitched the eighth before field conditions became too poor because of the rain and the game was stopped. The decision to end the night was made less than 20 minutes after the start of the delay.